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Partnerships, Innovation Bridge Global Food Supply Gap
NETHERLANDS - To meet the challenge of supplying the food needs of a growing world population, we are going to have to be smart and use all the tools we can. Some successful examples using partnerships and innovations were presented during Nutreco's AgriVision 2015 conference, reports Jackie Linden.Bridging the gap in global food security through partnerships and innovation was the theme of the final session of the recent AgriVision 2015 conference.
The event, which addressed the challenges of meeting sustainably the future needs for animal proteins, was held in June in the Dutch coastal resort of Noordwijk aan Zee, organised by Nutreco and co-sponsored by DuPont, Evonik and Rabobank.
In his concluding remarks, Harm de Wildt, Managing Director of Nutreco's Business Unit for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, confirmed his company's commitment to technology as a solution to sustainable food security.
At the same time, he said, there is sometimes distrust between food producers and food consumers and so the conference theme – Bridging the Gap – can also be applied to the distance between science and society, business and consumers.
According to Mr de Wildt, the world is facing a huge food security challenges and that couldprovide the spark to ignite conflicts.
"Without sustainable development, there is no progress. When you are poor, you use your skills to avoid hunger and people who are hungry cannot make progress," he said.
Keynote speaker at AgriVision was Dr Madeleine Albright spoke on economy and security in the 21st century. She was the first woman to be appointed Secretary of State in the United States in 1997, serving until 2001.
Strategic Partnerships That Share Values Can Bring Trust
Andrew Saunders, Agricultural Director and Board Member of Tulip UK outlined the partnerships that exist between Dalehead Foods, ForFarmers and Waitrose, which have been operating for more than 30 years in a very challenging market.
The market conditions he described may not be applicable to all countries but these working relationships demonstrate the importance of partnership, mutual trust and shared values.
Without trust commitment and transparency, there is no true and productive partnership, he said.
Nature Conservation Can Open Markets
Marc Diaz, Director of Naturevest for The Nature Conservancy, described how his organisation
works together with companies to build business cases for conservation projects that ultimately benefit the company, the environment and society at large.
The Nature Conservancy is one of the world's oldest and largest environmental non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
Mutual trust and insights into the values and opportunities for business are among the most important ingredients in successful partnerships, according to Mr Diaz.
Using Science to Optimise Business
Partnerships are also an indispensable part of technology development, said Viggo Halseth, Chief Innovation Officer for Nutreco. Using LifeStart as an example, he presented the Company's way of working – namely a shift from a product focus to providing total nutritional-based solutions.
Progress is being accelerated through science-based solutions to bridge the gap between science and industry as well as between different industry partners, he said.
Mr Halseth emphasised the need to think ahead to grasp the opportunities. If we are to tackle the challenges we face 10 years from today, we need to start to innovate today, he said.
Precision Livestock Farming Can Create Value
Professor Daniel Berckmans of the University of Leuven in Belgium presented a number of
examples of the opportunities Precision Livestock Farming offers to the livestock sector.
He showed how sensor technology can be used to monitor biological responses. This is already applied in fields as diverse as football and racing drivers as well as livestock production.
There were promising examples of how technology can help us make livestock production more sustainable, for example, through the early detection of health problems.
How to Build a Smarter Planet
Last but not least on the AgriVision 2015 programme, Djeevan Schiferli, Practice Leader at IBM Interactive Experience and Digital Strategy, showed how information technology can contribute to global food security.
He described a number of game-changing developments in the handling of Big Data from recent years.


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Carb Cycling 101
If are you at all interested in nutrition and exercise, you have come across the term "carb cycling". Essentially, carb cycling incorporates low carb days with carb loading days throughout the week. With the popularity of low to no carb diets, carb cycling is a healthy alternative that still supplies your muscles with the glycogen they need to perform and helps you to stay away from the side effects of no or low carb diets.

subset: commoncrawl


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The New Way to success.advance.progress.
Clary Business Machines was established in San Diego California, in 1954 aiming to deliver a large range of technological solutions online. With a customer base of over 25,000 in the last three years Clary has been ranked 940 among INC 5000 companies, No. 34 in the San Diego Business Journal Fastest growing 100 Private Companies and "Top 50 Fastest Growing Companies in San Diego".
About CLARY BUSINESS MACHINES
Clary targets the local corporation, government and educational institutes to improve their operations by providing cost effective and efficient solutions. With a large number of small to large commercial firms, government and public institutions the company has maintained well-established sales and service relationships. The goal of Clary Business Machines is to provide service solutions to its customers.
Clary has come a long way in becoming a trustworthy provider of state-of-the-art end-to-end technology solutions. Clary Business Machines provide wide-ranging office products, including Document Shredding Equipment, Hard Drive Shredders, Specialty Shredders, Paper Handling Products, Interactive Presentation Solutions, Furniture, ID Card Printers and much more. Product lines include Dahle, Fellowes, Formax, and HSM. Plus, Kobra, Intimus, MBM Destroyit and Swingline and more. Our long term, exclusive relationships with the manufacturers of products allow us to ensure that our customers receive best cooperation and support from the manufacturers. We also pay great deal of attention on after sale services and maintain a dedicated in-house customer service team to provide prompt service to our customers.
Clary Business Machines has adapted the strategy to become a "one stop shop for all office electronics needs" and is adding new lines to its product range such as telephony and video conferencing systems.
Our History
Established in San Diego
The company was first incorporated and the management was changed.
The company ventured into Internet Marketing with various products and developed multiple websites considering simplicity, user friendliness and customer's education. This strategy helped build very strong relationships with the manufacturers/suppliers. The company now owns 100 plus websites and generates a little over ½ its revenue through Internet sales nationwide.


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Research in recent years has uncovered a strong connection between reductions in lead pollution and the decline in violent crime in the U.S. Writing in Jones this month, Kevin Drum discusses the research of Rick Nevin, a consultant who began researching lead pollution during the 1990s for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Nevin's research has shown that the rise and fall of atmospheric lead produced by leaded gas closely corresponds to a similar rise and fall of violent crime.
Violent crime rates, writes Drum, "followed the same upside-down U pattern. The only thing different was the time period: Crime rates rose dramatically in the '60s through the '80s, and then began dropping steadily starting in the early '90s. The two curves looked eerily identical, but were offset by about 20 years."
In a paper published in in May 2000, Nevin demonstrated, Drum says, that "if you add a lag time of 23 years, lead emissions from automobiles explain 90 percent of the variation in violent crime in America. Toddlers who ingested high levels of lead in the '40s and '50s really were more likely to become violent criminals in the '60s, '70s, and '80s." In a 2007 paper, Nevin used worldwide data to support the same conclusion in country after country.
In a working paper published in 2007 by the National Bureau of Economic Research, Jessica Wolpaw Reyes used state-by-state data to show that "the reduction in childhood lead exposure in the late 1970s and early 1980s is responsible for significant declines in violent crime in the 1990s" and that that reduction "may cause further declines into the future." This year, a paper in by researchers from Tulane and Colorado State universities established the same correlation in six U.S. cities.
Drum writes, "Groups of children have been followed from the womb to adulthood, and higher childhood blood lead levels are consistently associated with higher adult arrest rates for violent crimes." Violent crime used to be disproportionately high in large cities compared with small ones. Big cities typically have a lot of cars in a small area. In the post-World War II era, that meant high concentrations of lead in the atmosphere. But as atmospheric lead decreased, so did the disconnect in violent crime between large and small cities. Now the rates are similar.
Neurological research has now proven the connection between lead and brain damage. Drum writes that "it turns out that childhood lead exposure at nearly any level can seriously and permanently reduce IQ." According to the EPA, "there currently is no demonstrated safe concentration of lead in blood, and adverse health effects can occur at lower concentrations." Research has shown that high lead exposure during childhood results in damage to the part of the brain that controls aggression. Even very small blood levels have been connected to attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Unfortunately, writes Drum, lead is still a danger today. Much of the lead that was emitted during the postwar period persists in the soil and can be reintroduced into the atmosphere through dust. Also, many older buildings still contain old lead paint. Cleanup of lead from soil and old window frames (the most dangerous location) would cost about $20 billion yearly for the next 20 years, Drum estimates. That sounds like a lot, but he also estimates the benefits at up to $150 billion per year.
+ Rick Nevin
Via Mother Jones
Photo credits: Tailpipe by Ruben de Rijcke via Wikimedia Commons; Handcuffs by .v1ctor. via Flickr


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Related links:
NEAR Flyby of Asteroid Mathilde
News story originally written on July 3, 1997
On June 27, 1997, the NEAR spacecraft passed very close to the asteroid Mathilde. NEAR stands for Near Earth Asteroid Rendevous.
Mathilde is a big asteroid. It is about 600 football fields across! This makes it the biggest asteroid a spacecraft has visited.
The NEAR spacecraft found five big craters on the surface of Mathilde. But it did not find water on the surface.


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2014 Ford Taurus 4dr Sdn SEL FWD
Contact Sales at Texas Perfect Auto
Phone: (832) 956-1423
10940 Katy Freeway , Houston , TX 77043
View on google map
Contact us
2014 Ford Taurus
City MPG | Hwy MPG | |
19.00 | 29.00 |
Additional Photos
Standard equipment
Front-Wheel Drive
2.77 Axle Ratio
72-Amp/Hr 650CCA Maintenance-Free Battery w/Run Down Protection
Gas-Pressurized Shock Absorbers
Front And Rear Anti-Roll Bars
Electric Power-Assist Speed-Sensing Steering
19 Gal. Fuel Tank
Quasi-Dual Stainless Steel Exhaust w/Chrome Tailpipe Finisher
Strut Front Suspension w/Coil Springs
Multi-Link Rear Suspension w/Coil Springs
4-Wheel Disc Brakes w/4-Wheel ABS, Front Vented Discs and Brake Assist
Brake Actuated Limited Slip Differential
Aluminum Spare Wheel
Compact Spare Tire Mounted Inside Under Cargo
Clearcoat Paint
Body-Colored Front Bumper
Body-Colored Rear Bumper w/Black Rub Strip/Fascia Accent
Chrome Side Windows Trim and Black Front Windshield Trim
Body-Colored Door Handles
Body-Colored Power Heated Side Mirrors w/Convex Spotter and Manual Folding
Fixed Rear Window w/Defroster
Light Tinted Glass
Speed Sensitive Variable Intermittent Wipers
Front Windshield -inc: Sun Visor Strip
Fully Galvanized Steel Panels
Chrome Grille
Trunk Rear Cargo Access
Fully Automatic Projector Beam Halogen Headlamps w/Delay-Off
Perimeter/Approach Lights
LED Brakelights
Laminated Glass
Radio w/Seek-Scan, Clock, Speed Compensated Volume Control, Steering Wheel Controls and Radio Data System
Window Grid Antenna
60-40 Folding Bench Front Facing Fold Forward Seatback Rear Seat
Manual Tilt/Telescoping Steering Column
Selective Service Internet Access
Leather/Metal-Look Steering Wheel
Front Cupholder
Rear Cupholder
Remote Releases -Inc: Power Cargo Access
Cruise Control w/Steering Wheel Controls
HVAC -inc: Underseat Ducts and Console Ducts
Dual Zone Front Automatic Air Conditioning
Illuminated Locking Glove Box
Driver Foot Rest
Interior Trim -inc: Metal-Look Instrument Panel Insert, Metal-Look Door Panel Insert and Chrome Interior Accents
Full Cloth Headliner
Cloth Door Trim Insert
Leather/Chrome Gear Shift Knob
Driver And Passenger Visor Vanity Mirrors w/Driver And Passenger Illumination
Day-Night Auto-Dimming Rearview Mirror
Full Floor Console w/Covered Storage, Mini Overhead Console w/Storage and 3 12V DC Power Outlets
Front And Rear Map Lights
Fade-To-Off Interior Lighting
Carpet Floor Trim and Carpet Trunk Lid/Rear Cargo Door Trim
Cargo Space Lights
FOB Controls -inc: Trunk/Hatch/Tailgate and Remote Engine Start
Driver / Passenger And Rear Door Bins
Delayed Accessory Power
Systems Monitor
Analog Display
Outside Temp Gauge
Seats w/Cloth Back Material
Manual w/Tilt Front Head Restraints and Fixed Rear Head Restraints
Front Center Armrest and Rear Center Armrest
2 Seatback Storage Pockets
Securilock Anti-Theft Ignition (pats) Engine Immobilizer
Perimeter Alarm
3 12V DC Power Outlets
Air Filtration
Side Impact Beams
Dual Stage Driver And Passenger Seat-Mounted Side Airbags
Low Tire Pressure Warning
Dual Stage Driver And Passenger Front Airbags
Safety Canopy System Curtain 1st And 2nd Row Airbags
Airbag Occupancy Sensor
Mykey System -inc: Top Speed Limiter, Audio Volume Limiter, Early Low Fuel Warning, Programmable Sound Chimes and Beltminder w/Audio Mute
Rear Child Safety Locks
Outboard Front Lap And Shoulder Safety Belts -inc: Rear Center 3 Point, Height Adjusters and Pretensioners
About us
Located in Houston , Texas, Texas perfect auto is a pre-owned, late model dealer that provides customers with a complete automotive experience at competitive prices.
Texas perfect auto is dedicated to customer satisfaction and we have provided you with a map, as well as our address and phone number to help you find us easily.
We are passionate about luxury cars and we intent on sharing that passion with you when you purchase your new car from us.
Come by today and test drive the car of your choice.


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International Finance: About Foreign Exchange
About Foreign Exchange
As you know, money is anything that is accepted as a medium of exchange. In most of the world, people accept pieces of paper imprinted with pictures of national heroes or local wonders of nature as money. But in each nation, they accept different pieces of paper.
This means that if someone in the United States wants to buy something from someone in, say, Mexico, she must first exchange her local currency—dollars—for the currency accepted in Mexico—pesos. This currency conversion occurs at an exchange rate.
The exchange rate—the price of one nation's currency in terms of another nation's—is a central concept in international finance. Virtually any nation's currency can be converted into the currency of any other nation, thanks to exchange rates and the foreign exchange market. For instance, let's say the current exchange rate between the U.S. dollar and the Mexican peso is $1 to 10 pesos. This means that $1 will buy 10 pesos and that 10 pesos will buy $1. (I am ignoring transaction costs, such as the commission charged by the bank or foreign exchange broker who does the currency conversion.)
Currency conversion is the procedure of changing one currency into another currency. The exchange rate is the ratio by which one currency is converted into another. It is the price of one currency expressed in another currency. Exchange rates are necessary because currencies have different values relative to one another.
The foreign exchange market includes the importers, exporters, banks, brokers, traders, and organizations involved in currency conversion. The FX or FOREX market, as it is called, is not a physical place—though many participants work in offices and on trading floors—but rather the entire network of participants in the market.
Importers and exporters need foreign currency in order to complete transactions. Banks and brokers maintain inventories of foreign exchange, that is, various currencies, and convert currencies as a service to customers. Traders and speculators make (or lose) money on the movement of foreign exchange rates (which I'll describe later). As you will see, central banks also play a role in the foreign exchange market.
Types of Exchange Rates
Foreign currency exchange rates have historically been determined in three different ways:
- Fixed rates
- Floating (or flexible) rates
- Managed rates
With a fixed exchange rate, the value of the currency is determined by the nation's central bank and held in place by central bank actions, mainly the purchase and sale of the currency. Another way to fix exchange rates, which has been used by the United States and other nations in the past, is to tie currencies to the gold standard. If all the currencies in the exchange rate system have a value pegged to gold, it is a simple matter to convert the currencies to one another according to their value in gold.
Floating exchange rates are determined by the market forces of supply and demand. We will examine these forces in this section. Essentially, if demand for a currency increases, the value of that currency in terms of other currencies increases. If demand for the currency decreases, then the value of the currency decreases.
Managed exchange rates are influenced by nations' central banks, but are not targeted to a fixed rate. In practice, the system of managed rates that we have today operates through the forces of supply and demand and are influenced by central banks. So we now have a mix of floating and managed rates, which is called managed float.
Foreign Currency Supply and Demand
The economic forces that determine foreign exchange rates are rooted in supply and demand, both of which are determined mainly by foreign trade activity. For instance, if Americans increase their demand for products from Mexico, Americans will need to buy more pesos in order to buy those Mexican products. Thus an increase in U.S. demand for Mexican imports will increase the demand for pesos. The dynamics are illustrated in Figure 18.1.
An increase in the demand for any item, including currency, will increase its price. As we see in Figure 18.1, that is the case when Americans demand more pesos. The increase in the demand for pesos from $10 billion worth to $12 billion worth increased the price of pesos. Where $1.00 used to buy 10 pesos, after the increase in U.S. demand for Mexican imports—from $10 billion worth to $12 billion of Mexican goods—it takes $1.20 to buy 10 pesos. Put another way, a peso that used to cost 10 costs 12 after the increase in demand.
Business news reporters often employ colorful turns of phrase to describe economic events, but the terminology can be confusing. When a reporter states that the "dollar rallied" in that day's trading, it means that the dollar (or whatever currency is being discussed) strengthened against most currencies. When a reporter says there was a "sell off" of the dollar or that the dollar "was attacked," it means that the dollar weakened against most currencies.
In this situation, the dollar is said to have depreciated against the peso. Other ways of stating this are to say that the dollar lost value, lost ground, or weakened against the peso. This sounds worse than it is. All it means is that the United States demanded more imports from Mexico. But this kind of language is used for a simple reason: The dollar buys less than it used to in Mexico. After the increase in the peso to dollar exchange rate, it takes $1.20 to buy what $1.00 used to buy in Mexico.
Given the law of supply and demand, this only makes sense. When Americans demand more Mexican products, they bid up the price of those products. When that occurs, the exchange rate mechanism adjusts itself to reflect that price increase. Therefore, the price of the peso, and thus of Mexican goods, rises.
Let's look at this from Mexico's point of view. If the dollar has depreciated—lost value, lost ground, and weakened—against the peso, then the peso has appreciated—gained value, gained ground, and strengthened—against the dollar. While this makes Mexico's products more expensive for Americans, it also makes U.S. products cheaper for Mexicans. The effects of the changes in two currencies mirror one another.
Excerpted from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Economics © 2003 by Tom Gorman. All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. Used by arrangement with Alpha Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
To order this book direct from the publisher, visit the Penguin USA website or call 1-800-253-6476. You can also purchase this book at Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.


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Cookies are small text files, which save information about how you use a website. By using cookies, specific information, such as browsing information can be obtained. However, information that can identify an individual, such as the customer's name, address, telephone number or email address, will not be obtained.
If the cookie is saved, our web server will be able to recognize your computer. When visiting the website again and using login functions where you need to enter your JAL Mileage Bank membership number, the cookie can save you additional entries. Cookies simplify visits to sites that require the entry of user data, so the cookies of JAL's website are only intended to make surfing more user friendly.
The use of cookies is limited to the purposes of improving the customer experience on our website.
A warning message can be displayed when accepting or rejecting cookies by changing settings on your browser.
If you do decide to change your cookie settings, you can do this through your browser. Each browser works in a different way, so you will need to search for 'cookie settings' in your browser's help section to find out how to do this.
If you set your browser to show a warning message whenever it receives a cookie, with every query of a new JAL webpage the identification cookie needs to be sent, so the warning message can be disturbing.
Please be informed, also, that rejecting cookies may restrict some of the services on-line.


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London & Paris Escape
See the sights you want to see in London and Paris with local expert guides, but without the crowds or high-season prices. Your escorted vacation in London begins with a welcome dinner, wine, and a narrated cruise on the Thames River to admire the illuminated Tower Bridge, St. Paul's Cathedral, and the Houses of Parliament. You'll spend three nights in London to see the iconic sites of this historic city—from Big Ben to Buckingham Palace, and more. You'll also ride the London Eye for unmatched views of the city and outlying landscapes from the giant observation wheel. Enjoy ample free time to explore London's many points of interest on your own as well, before boarding a high-speed train to Paris.
Enjoy a 3-night stay in Paris, with a visit to the magnificent Notre Dame Cathedral, and included sightseeing featuring the Arc de Triomphe, Concorde Square, Champs-Élysées, and a visit to the second floor of the iconic Eiffel Tower. You'll also have precious free time to spend exploring the City of Lights on your own—to see the Louvre Museum or just pass time leisurely in a French café. However you choose to spend free time during your London to Paris Escape, your guided tour of London and Paris favorites is certain to be enjoyable with fewer crowds in the off-season!
City Highlights
LONDON [LF] Welcome dinner, followed by a narrated, nighttime river cruise on the Thames; guided sightseeing; London Eye rideLONDON–PARIS By high-speed Eurostar trainPARIS Guided visit to Notre Dame Cathedral; guided sightseeing, visit the 2nd floor of the Eiffel Tower; farewell dinner at a local restaurant
Full buffet breakfast daily; 2 dinners with wine: a welcome dinner at a local restaurant in London and a farewell dinner at a local restaurant in Paris
Hotels listed may occasionally be substituted with alternative hotels of equivalent standard.For operational reasons, slight schedule changes for the Paris program cannot be excluded.For departures January 6, 13, & 20 the London Eye will be closed for annual maintenance.
Thames River cruise; high-speed Eurostar train


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Feb 04, 2011 | |
Penn breaks ground for nanotechnology center |
(Nanowerk News) On Feb. 17, Penn President Amy Gutmann will join University Trustees and the deans of the Schools of Arts and Sciences (SAS) and Engineering and Applied Science at the 3200 block of Walnut Street for a groundbreaking ceremony for the Krishna P. Singh Center for Nanotechnology.
Rendering of the Krishna P. Singh Center for Nanotechnology The $80 million Center, named for Penn alumnus and Trustee Krishna Singh, will provide microscopy laboratories, optics labs and 10,000 square feet of environmentally controlled clean rooms to researchers at Penn and in the region. Singh, who provided a $20 million naming gift for the Center, is founder, president and chief executive officer of the energy-technology company Holtec International, based in Marlton, N.J. The state-of-the-art facility, developed jointly by SAS and Penn Engineering, will place the University at the forefront of the emerging and vital field of nanoscience, says Eduardo Glandt, dean of Penn Engineering, by serving as a regional hub of multi-disciplinary fundamental and translational research, education and innovation. "This facility will allow researchers in academia and business to venture into this transformative technology," he says. |
The private groundbreaking ceremony, scheduled for noon at the future site of the building, will coincide with the spring meeting of the University Trustees. | |
"We are thrilled to be taking this important step toward providing our faculty with access to state-of-the-art resources, and even more thrilled with the opportunities that the Singh Center will create for scientists from Penn Engineering, SAS, and elsewhere to collaborate," says Rebecca Bushnell, dean of SAS. | |
"Science is, after all, done by people, and as the boundaries between scientific disciplines become increasingly blurred, this kind of collaboration is what will keep Penn at the cutting edge of research." | |
The 100,000 square-foot, L-shaped Center is being designed by the New York-based firm Weiss/Manfredi. The structure will feature walls of glass and steel and is expected to be one of the largest nanotechnology centers in the region. "Its close proximity to a world-class medical school will facilitate advances in medicine and the health sciences," Glandt says. |
Source: University of Pennsylvania |


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I always loved this Sephardi dish I grew up with: In the finished dish the chicken breasts were diced, the chicken livers were whole and the lamb was shaped into meatballs. I made it and it was quite delicious but a little messy. When I recently asked my mother how she kept every item so neat and presentable, her "secret" was just too time consuming. Next time around, I ground everything and made meatballs with the whole mixture, and I found making the dish much more accessible and low maintenance, and every bit as delicious. You can save time further by buying the chicken livers broiled: make sure they are broiled properly, not all dried out: We want them tender and creamy!
- 4 cups water
- 2 teaspoons turmeric
- 2 tablespoons paprika
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 good pinches red pepper flakes, a little more if you like it hotter
- 1 pound ground lamb
- 1 pound chicken cutlets
- 1 pound broiled chicken livers
- 8 cloves garlic
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup warm water
- ground pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon cumin (goes in all the way at the end)
- 4 tablespoons minced parsley, for garnish
Bring the first set of ingredients to boil in a wide heavy pot. Process all meatballs ingredients until smooth. Transfer the ground mixture to a bowl. Form meatballs, and throw in the hot liquid as you shape them, using up the whole mixture. Reduce the flame to medium, and cook covered 30 minutes. Stir in the cumin and cook 5 more minutes. Check the liquid in the pot: If it is too thin, reduce on a high flame until thickened to the consistency of maple syrup. Transfer the meatballs and their sauce to a platter. Sprinkle with parsley. Serve hot.
One of my favorites, overlaid with Moroccan flavors. All of you out there always asking how we turn a same old, same old salad into an exciting Sephardi main course salad: You can glorify it even further by throwing in some leftover diced fish or chicken, or make it dairy, and throw in some crumbled feta.
- 8 cloves garlic
- 3 ribs celery, peeled
- 1 jalapeño, stem cut off
- 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley
- ½ preserved lemon, skin only, rinsed (page 19 settle for zest of 2 lemons if you don't have any on hand)
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1∕3 cup fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons cumin
- 1 tablespoon oregano
- Bottled hot sauce to taste
- 3 cups canned chickpeas (1 large can), drained and rinsed
- 6 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced small
- 1 cup pitted Moroccan (oil-cured) olives
- ¼ cup capers
- 3 romaine hearts, sliced very thin
Make the dressing: In a food processor, finely grind the garlic, celery, jalapeño, parsley, and preserved lemon. Add the oil, lemon, cumin, oregano, and
hot sauce, and pulse just 1–2 times, until combined but still chunky.
Place all the salad ingredients in a platter. Toss with the dressing. Serve at room temperature.
Makes 8 servings.
Sephardi food at its best and most fragrant. Straight from the Moroccan kitchen of my childhood. Ridiculously simple ingredients and hardly any labor. I have included several variations to make it a full one-pot dish, but you can choose to go without and make this a wonderful all-vegetable main course or just a side dish. When you see what magic the preserved lemon does to this dish, you will never ever want to run out! This said, if you do run out, use fresh lemons.
- 2 dozen very small organic potatoes, unpeeled, halved potatoes (only organic potatoes are safe with their skin on)
- 2 dozen green pitted olives, rinsed
- 2 cups canned crushed tomatoes, or 4 plum tomatoes, diced small
- 1 medium onion, sliced very thin
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- Good pinch red pepper flakes, optional
- 3 cups water
- 1 small bunch parsley
- ¼ preserved lemon skin only, rinsed (settle for 1 fresh lemon, sliced thin, skin and all, but use it in the first set of ingredients above)
- 4 sprigs cilantro, tough stems, discarded
Bring the first set of ingredients to boil in a wide heavy pot. Reduce the heat to medium and cook covered for 30 minutes.
In a food processor, finely grind the parsley, preserved lemon, and cilantro and stir this mixture gently into the pot. Cook another 15 minutes With a slotted spoon, transfer all ingredients to a platter, leaving mostly the cooking liquids. If they are too thin, reduce a few minutes on a high flame until the sauce thickens, and pour evenly over the dish. Serve hot. Room temperature OK too. Makes 8 servings.
- Use 2 large heads fennel, cut in thin wedges, instead of, or in addition to, the potatoes. Proceed just as above.
- Use a large head celery root, cut into 1″ cubes, instead of, or in addition to, the potatoes. Proceed just as above.
- Use a dozen frozen and thawed artichoke bottoms, larger ones quartered, instead of, or in addition to, the potatoes. Proceed just as above.
- Make this a chicken main dish. Cook the dish with chicken pieces. Proceed just as above, cooking the dish a little longer if necessary until the chicken is tender.
- Make this a fish main dish. Add sliced salmon or other thick-sliced fish, or tilapia fillets, all boneless, after about 15 minutes. Proceed just as above.
- Make this a vegetarian main dish. Add extra firm tofu or tempeh, diced, or two cups cooked chickpeas. Proceed just as above.
mh- New York Jewish Guide.com


text: Designed by Peter Homestead, the MainSail Sling Collection has a flowing look with just enough detailing to complement a wide range of decors. All MainSail pieces are made of powder-coated aluminum and built to withstand the elements. Tropitone® MainSail features a sled base and is ergonomically designed with a lumbar-supported seating position which provides long-lasting comfort and encouraging casual relaxation. Whether lounging by the pool, relaxing in a cabana, or socializing in the outdoor dining area, each MainSail Sling piece was developed to enhance outdoor living.


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Drupal to secure its update process with HTTPS
Last week, researcher Fernando Arnaboldi from security firm IOActive disclosed several issues with the update mechanism in Drupal: the failure of the back-end administration panel to report update errors, a cross-site request forgery (CSRF) flaw that could allow attackers to force admins to repeatedly trigger update checks, and the lack of encryption for update downloads.
The last issue was the most significant one, because it could have allowed attackers who could intercept the traffic between a Drupal-based site and the official Drupal servers, to inject back-doored updates. Such an attack could lead to the compromise of the site and its database.
Fortunately, the Drupal security team was notified in advance and is working to fix the update shortcomings. Over the past few days the team has switched the project's infrastructure to support HTTPS so that the update processes for the Drupal core and its modules use secure channels.
For now the team has enabled HTTPS updates in Drush, a popular command-line shell and scripting interface for Drupal. It has also switched all download links from the project's pages to HTTPS.
The core update status module still doesn't use secure transport, but this is being worked on and will be deployed in the next Drupal update, the security team said in a blog post.
For now, website administrators can use a supported version of Drush to deploy updates or can manually download the release archives from their corresponding project pages.
The failed update notification issue and the CSRF flaw have not been addressed yet, but the Drupal security team opened tracking tickets for them and asked developers to contribute patches.


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Water Leaks
Water Meter Boxes
Uncovered water meter boxes or water meter lids that are improperly placed are potentially dangerous hazards. After you are done viewing your water meter, be sure to properly replace the water meter lid immediately. The lid should not be able to move and it should be safe to walk across. Never leave the water meter uncovered without proper supervision, and do not leave it uncovered for longer than is necessary.
If the lid is damaged or improperly fits the box, please notify the Maintenance Division at 530-841-2370.
What Causes Leaks
Water leaks are frequently caused by running or leaking toilets, deteriorated pipes, loose, ill fitting, or broken pipe fittings,
How to Tell if You Have a Leak
Sometimes it is easy to tell if you have a water leak. For example, when water is pooling on the property, or you can see water dripping or spraying out of a pipe on your property. Other times the leaks are relatively small, or the water drains off your property before you notice it pooling. Even small leaks can dramatically increase your water bill. To find out if you have a leak, use the following methods.
Method 1
Turn off all water faucets, taps or other fixtures that use water inside and outside your home. Record the meter's current reading and return in two to three hours to see if there is a change. If the meter reading has changed, you may have a leak.
Method 2
Many meters have a small red (or blue) triangle or star shape on the meter face. This is for tracking low flow through the meter. If it is moving when you have all water off inside and outside your home, you may have a leak.
Where is My Water Meter
Your water meter is typically located in front of your property next the street curb or sometimes in an alley behind your home. The water meter will be inside a water meter box that is labeled, and typically has a metal cover.
How Do I Read My Water Meter
If water is being used, the sweep hand (most likely red) or the low flow indicator will most likely be moving. You can also tell when water has been used by reading the register (looks like a mileage odometer on a car). The register indicates the number of gallons that have been used.
How to Locate a Leak
If your property has a shutoff valve adjacent to the house or building itself, turn this valve off, record the water meter reading, and wait 2 to 3 hours. If the meter reading changes, then your water leak is most likely between the house and the meter. If the meter reading does not change, your leak is most likely in the house, yard, or irrigation system.
Leaking toilets are frequently the cause of water leaks and consequently high water bills. To check to see if your toilet is leaking, add food dye or some other dying agent to the toilet tank. Wait 15 to 30 minutes, or longer, and make sure nobody uses the toilet. After waiting, check the toilet bowl, and if there is any dye coloring in the bowl, you may have a leak.


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Saturday 19 June 2010
Scaling, or 'size matters, but so does gravity'
It is not rare to read statements to the effect that animals on a high gravity world must have thick columnar legs and those on a low gravity world will have spindly legs. In fact, I have written several such statements in this blog. The problem is that these statements are not very precise. After all, thick-legged elephants and spindly-legged spiders share the same gravity, so such statements are at best incomplete. There are several excellent books on scaling in animals (here's one that is easily available), but none deal with the added effect of different gravity. This post will not do that either; gravity will be dealt with later. Before discussing it another matter deserves attention: how will legs look if their only function is to act as pillars to support weight. In reality, they move, and that requires other design characteristics as well. Some knowledge of mathematics is needed.
Let's start with a simple thought experiment: a small block sitting on a column, marked A in the picture above. The column has just the right width to support the weight of the block sitting on it without collapsing. The cylinder stands in for a bone in a leg. Its capability to support weight depends on the surface area of its cross section. Suppose its diameter is D: the formula for the cross section contains D^2. The actual diameter in centimeters is not relevant; what is important is that an increase in diameter is accompanied by a larger increase in cross section: doubling the diameter increases the cross section four times, and a triple diameter causes the diameter to increase nine times. You all knew that, I guess.
The block sitting on the leg can be described by the length of any of its edges; let's call that L. The volume of the block is given by L to the third power, here written as L^3. We are more interested in weight than in volume, and weight depends on several things: the mass of the object and the force of gravity (which we will forget about for the moment). The mass of an object depends on the relative density of the material (whether it is light or heavy; we will also forget about that) and of course on the volume of the object. The weight of the block is proportional to its volume, and so to L^3.
Now let's make everything bigger by multiplying every length measure by 2: both L and D become twice as large. That is situation B in the image above. The weight of the block is 8 times larger than it was: it was proportional to volume, L^3, and the new volume is (2L)^3=8L^3. You can check that visually: the old block fits 8 times in the new one. The diameter of the column has doubled too. The original diameter was proportional to D^2, so the new one becomes (2D)^2, or 4D^2. In other words, it has become four times as big. It can therefore carry four times as much weight as the original column. That is nice, but it is not good enough, as the block sitting on it has become 8 times heavier!
The only way to get around this is to redesign the width of the column. By how much does the original diameter D have to be changed to support a block weighing 8 times the original one? The answer is that the column's cross-sectional area must become 8 times larger than it was. That equation is not that hard to solve. If a scaling factor x for the diameter is introduced, so the new diameter becomes xD, the new cross section will become (xD)^2 which is x^2D^2. The x^2 bit says how much larger the cross section has to become. which was 8 times; hence x^2=8. X is the square root of 8, or about 2.83. So the new diameter should not be doubled, but should increase by 2.83, and that is what was done in situation C, shown above.
Remember where the '8' came from that we too the square root of: it was the third power of 2, and 2 was the factor x we increased size by. What we in fact did was take the factor x, raise it to the third power to put the new weight in, and then take the square root to get the new diameter factor. Doing it in one go means raising the factor to the power of 3/2.
So this is why large animals need relatively thicker legs than small ones: cross sections depend on squaring a length measure and weights on raising it to the third power. For my next trick, I illustrated this for a stick animal. I made a 'Disneius caniformis (varietas hortiformis)', i.e., the garden-variety cartoon doggie, shown above. Its body and head consist of spheres, and these correspond to the block above: as for a block, its volume depends on a length measure raised to the third power. The legs and its neck are coloured yellow, and correspond to the column above: the diameter of these yellow body parts will be adjusted to the weight of all the brown parts. D. caniformis above is one meter in length, so it is the size of a large dog. The chair is there to give some idea of scale.
Let's do some fast evolution and evolve a cousin that is 10 times smaller, so the size factor is 0.1: D. musformis. It is only 10 cm long and weighs 1000 times less than D. caniformis. The diameter of its legs was altered by a factor 0.1^1.5, or 0.0316. The result is an animal with different characteristics, much more fitting with a small animal. You may wonder why I did not splay its legs sideways or bend them more, but such matters will be kept for another post.
Evolution could have gone the other way, so the size factor becomes 10. The resulting D. giganticus is 10 m long and 1000 times heavier than D. caniformis. This animal only has equals among dinosaurs and a few of the largest mammals ever. Its legs have become truly colossal: their diameter has increased by a factor 31.6! (that is 10^1.5). You may well wonder whether such an animal is still practical: after all: the enlarged legs now make up a much larger portion of its body mass than for D. caniformis, while doing the same thing: allowing the animal to stand.
Finally, here are the three species together, and this was the problem I started with: how do you depict a mouse and a dinosaur in one picture? Zooming out enough to make D. giganticus visible meant rendering D. musformis invisible, so instead I zoomed in enough to make D. musformis visible while keeping D. giganticus most impressive feature visible: its legs.
A warning for those who are still reading this: there is quite a bit of evidence that the mechanics explained above do work. For instance, within bovids (cows and their kin) bone diameter is related to bone length along the principle explained above. Here is an internet page which explains some of the same things and shows some factual data (my data are from other sources). Most bovids look rather alike, and that may help explain why the relation fits so well. If you take mammals of all shapes and form, the fit is less good and skeleton mass does not increase as much as it 'should'. There appear to be various reasons for this. The most important one is that legs move, which, as said, poses other demands on their design. So please do not start designing animals with exactly these configurations, as that may be incorrect.
Similar thoughts hold for other organs and tissues. For instance, the force a typical mammalian muscle exerts is proportional to the cross section of its fibres. Do you see the problem? When you double an animal's size the mass of its muscles increases eightfold, but their strength only increases fourfold. Relatively speaking you have made the animal weaker! Very complex, animal scaling; it's a god thing the effects of gravity are less complex...
8 comments:
- Evan Black said...
One thing I'd be interested to see is how density factors into the equation. For example, what's the average density of a human body? Or other animals? How light could you make the legs and still maintain necessary strength to support given weights?
- 26 June 2010 at 07:53
- Sigmund Nastrazzurro said...
Hi Evan,
Density directly affects mass and thus weight, and is therefore important. Many animal tissues are basically water, with important exceptions for bone, which is significantly heavier, and lungs, if you include the air in them. If bones were made of a lighter but stronger material, you could get away with a more slender skeleton, everything else staying equal. Inventing muscles that provide more strength for their mass than ours do would also help. With such alteration you could obtain animals with legs more slender than an animal with conventional bones and muscles could afford to be. - 27 June 2010 at 13:31
- Evan Black said...
Another thing I've been pondering is if the same formulas for upscaling and different gravity apply to the surface area of wings. Obviously atmosphere density would have to be factored in, but other than that are the calculations pretty much the same?
- 23 September 2010 at 04:49
- Sigmund Nastrazzurro said...
Hi Evan,
Have a look at this post first: http://planetfuraha.blogspot.com/2009/12/anatomy-of-alien-high-gravity.html
Lift is proportional to wing area. Take a flying animal, and multiply all its dimensions by three: its mass (~weight) increases 27-fold, but its wing area only nine times. To get the same relative lift the wing area will have to increase 27-fold, which requires multiplying the original wing dimensions 5.2 times instead of 3 times (and a bit more because the larger wing increases weight, etc.). So yes! - 23 September 2010 at 18:59
- Evan Black said...
Excellent, thank you! So, if I understand correctly, then if you have that 9x creature with 9x wings, but put them in a 3x density atmosphere then they will have sufficient mathematical lift?
Also, where did you get the number 5.2 from? - 23 September 2010 at 20:42
- Sigmund Nastrazzurro said...
Yes: if you increase density 3 times lift will be restored. Here is another example, but now the animal's length, width and size are multiplied 4 (n) times.
- Its area (including wing area) grows with the square of the multiplication factor, so becomes 4x4=16 times larger (n^2).
- Lift is proportional to wing area, so lift increases 16 times.
- Its weight increases with the third power, so becomes 4x4x4=64 times larger (n^3)
- If the original lift:weight ratio was 1:1, keeping it aloft, for the bigger animal it is 16:64, or 0.25:1. That is 4 times worse (n)
-How to restire that?
A. Make the wing area 64 times bigger than originally. The new multiplication factor is the root of 64, or 8. Wing area if length x width, and if each becomes 8 times larger, the area is 64 times larger. You get that as the square root of n^3. With n=3, that is 5.2.
B. Make the atmosphere 4 (n) times more dense
C. Fly faster. The effect of velocity in the lift formula has to increase 4 times (n times). as velocity is there as a square, velocity itself has to increase with the square root of 4: make it fly twice as fast. (it will drop like a stone when it attempts to slow down to land)
I hope this helps - 23 September 2010 at 22:11
- Evan Black said...
It does help. Thank you!
- 24 September 2010 at 19:44
- Sigmund Nastrazzurro said...
Sorry about the typos; I was in a hurry.
- 24 September 2010 at 22:18


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1) ADI PURUSH AVATAR (Incarnation as the Pre-eminent man) : Lord Vishnu took his first incarnation as the pre-eminent man, with a desire to commence creation. This first incarnation of Lord Vishnu was full of all the sixteen Kalas (Supernatural powers).Lord Brahma manifested from the navel of Lord Vishnu in his (Lord Vishnu) state of Yoganidra (deep meditation). The creation as well as the expansion of the creation commenced from the organs of Lord Brahma. The first incarnation of Lord Vishnu is all-powerful, which can be seen only by the yogins and sages who have attained divine knowledge. This incarnation is also the indestructible seed from which all the other incarnations manifest themselves. During the time of final annihilation of the world, every creation merges into him.
2) THE ETERNAL YOUTHS : Sanatkumar was the 'Manasputra' (born by a wish) of Lord Brahma. Throughout his life, he maintained celibacy; and engaged himself in the performance of tremendous penance. He was the one from whom the Brahmins got the inspiration regarding the values and importance of penance and Celibacy.
3) VARAHA AVATAR (The incarnation as a Boar) : Lord Vishnu took his third incarnation as a boar. In this incarnation Lord Vishnu rescued the earth which had submerged in the ocean, and brought it out from the ocean. The whole creation started only after that. A demon by the name of Hiranyaksha had abducted the earth and carried it to the 'Rasatala' (the second lowest of the world). The earth is considered to be as a 'Woman' and since it is a crime to abduct a woman therefore Lord Vishnu in his incarnation of a boar killed the demon Hiranyaksha and liberated the earth from his clutches.
4) NARADA AVATAR (The incarnation as Sage Narada) : Lord Vishnu took his fourth incarnation as Narada. Narada by becoming a 'Devarishi' among all the sages, achieved liberation from all of his Karma's (action). Narada was the one who gave discourses to the Vaishnavas (followers of Lord Vishnu) on 'Pancharatra Tantra'.Lord Vishnu in his incarnation as Narada, showed that, the devotion is the best mean of getting liberated from all the bondages of 'Karma's'. He also said that a devotee of Lord Vishnu is the supreme among the devotees in the same way as Devarishi Narada among the Sages.
5) NARA-NARAYANA AVATAR (Incarnation as Nara-Narayana) : Lord Vishnu took his fifth incarnation as sage Nara-Narayan by taking a birth from the womb of a woman named 'Kala'. He performed a tremendous penance by going to Badri and Kedar. He showed the importance Penance (Labour), and also that nothing can be achieved in this world without it.
6) KAPILA AVATAR(Incarnation as Sage Kapila) : Lord Vishnu's Sixth incarnation was as sage Kapila. The objective of this incarnation was to compile all the divine knowledge that had been destroyed. He was the profounder of Sankhya Shastra (rationalism) which helped the Brahmins, who had forgotten their duties to rectify their mistakes. He also gave discourse to his own mother.
7) DATTATRAYA AVATAR (Incarnation as Dattatraya) : Lord Vishnu's Seventh incarnation was as Dattatraya. He was born to Ansuya and his father was Sage Atri. He was the one who had given Spiritual Knowledge to King Alarka and Prahlada. He had twenty four teachers. He believed that in the world, a man can learn from each and every thing, so he accepted twenty-four objects like water, bird, air, an unmarried girl, and even a prostitute etc.
8) YAGYA AVATAR (Incarnation as Yagya): Lord Vishnu in his eighth incarnation as Yagya was born to Prajapati and Akuti. He had rescued a 'Devagana' (celestial and supernatural being) named Yama and also the Manvantar named as 'Swayambhuva'. The main thrust of his teaching was based on the values of helpfulness and protecting each other during the time of crisis.
9) RISHABH AVATAR (Incarnation as Rishabh Dev) : Lord Vishnu in his ninth incarnation as Rishabh Dev was born to king Nabhi and Marudevi. His mother Marudevi was the daughter of Indra. He attained that state of Paramhansa (an ascetic of highest order who has controlled his anger) which is an uphill task. He was given the title of 'Jin' which means a ' a knower'. His followers are known as Jains.
10) PRITHU AVATAR (Incarnation as Prithu) : Lord Vishnu in his tenth incarnation as 'Prithu' came into existence after the body of King 'Vena'. Lord Vishnu took this incarnation as per the wishes of the sages. The earth had concealed all the vegetation's within her and as a result the whole land had become barren. To protect the humanity, Lord Vishnu took incarnation as Prithu by milking the cow (earth). This is considered that as a very supreme incarnation, because the earth has remained full of vegetation's after that.
11) MATSYA AVATAR (Incarnation as a Fish) : All the oceans had unified into a single ocean in the 'Manvantara' of 'Chakshusha'. Lord Vishnu in his 11th incarnation as a Matsya (Fish) rescued the earth from 'Maya' the demon. He gave discourses to Satyavrat along with the seven sages, while they were sitting on the boat. He also showed them his illusionary powers. This was his eleventh incarnation.
12) KACHCHAP AVATAR (Incarnation as a Tortoise) : Lord Vishnu in his twelfth incarnation as a tortoise, held the mountain 'Mandarachala' on his back, during the time when the deities and the demons where churning the ocean. He stopped the mountain from going to the netherworld. This was Lord Vishnu's twelfth incarnation.
13) DHANVANTARI (Incarnation as Dhanvantari) : Lord Vishnu took his thirteenth incarnation as Dhanvantari. He manifested from the ocean holding a vessel filled with ambrosia. He was the profounder of medicinal science.
14) MOHINI AVATAR (Incarnation as a most Enchanting woman) : Lord Vishnu in his fourteenth incarnation as a most enchanting woman enchanted the demons by his beautiful appearance of a woman, and took away the pot filled up with ambrosia from them and gave it to the deities. The deities were thus protected from the demons.
15) NARSIMHA AVATAR (Incarnation in the form of half-man and half-lion) : Lord Vishnu took his fifteenth incarnation as Nrisimha, having upper portion of his body in the form of lion and the lower portion resembling of a man. In this incarnation he protected Prahlada from his father Hiranyakashipu the demon. He killed Hiranyakashipu by tearing his body apart by his nails. Lord Vishnu had to attain this form because Lord Brahma had blessed Hiranyakashipu, that a Human being could not kill him.
16) HAYAGREEVA AVATAR (Incarnation as Hayagreeva) : Once Lord Brahma becoming tired of his creative activities, wanted to rest. The night of the Brahma was approaching. Because of his tiredness Lord Brahma yawned. All the four Vedas came out from his opened mouth. A demon who used to live near him in disguise, abducted the Vedas. Lord Vishnu took his sixteenth incarnation as Hayagreeva to protect the Vedas. In this incarnation his face resembled that of a horse and the rest of his body resembled that of Sri Narayan with all of his four hands. He killed the demon and protected the Vedas.
17) VAMAN AVATAR (Incarnation as a Dwarf) : Lord Vishnu took his seventeenth incarnation as a Dwarf, when Bali the king of the demons had captured the entire three worlds. Indra and all the other deities were wandering all around after losing the heaven.To help the deities regain control over the heaven. Lord Vishnu disguised as a dwarf went to Bali when he was busy performing a 'Yagya' and demanded earth measured by his three steps. When 'Bali' agreed, he transformed his form from a small dwarf to a giant. Consequently he covered all the three world with his two steps. Ultimately he regained heaven for the deities.
18) PARSHURAM AVATAR (Incarnation as Parshurama) : When the Kshatriya kings became ruthless and started exploiting their subjects. Lord Vishnu took his eighteenth incarnation as Parshurama' and annihilated the Kshatriyas kings for seventeen times and consequently donated the earth to the Brahmins.
19) VYAS AVATAR (Incarnation as Sage Vyas) : Lord Vishnu took his nineteenth incarnation as Sage Vyasa by taking birth from the womb of 'Satyavati'. His father was sage Parashar. He made the division of Veda, and made extension of its branches. He also wrote eighteen Mahapuranas and the Mahabharata.
20) RAM AVATAR (Incarnation as Lord Rama) : Lord Rama is considered to be the twentieth incarnation of Lord Vishnu. In this incarnation he constructed a bridge over the ocean with the help of the Vanars (monkeys) and after crossing over to Lankas killed many demons like Ravana, Kumbhakarna. He accomplished many astonishing feats and saved the deities. He taught the value of morality.
21) BALARAM AVATAR (Incarnation as Balrama) : Balrama is considered to be the twenty-first incarnation of LordVishnu. In this incarnation he killed Pralambasura the demon and he killed many more demons.
22) KRISHNA AVATAR (Incarnation as Krishna) : Lord Krishna born in Mathura was the twenty-second incarnation of Lord Vishnu. He fought against the exploitation right from his childhood and killed many demons like Kalayavan, Kansa, Jarasandh etc. He gave a divine knowledge to Arjun during the battle of Kurukshetra.
23) BUDDHA AVATAR (Incarnation as Buddha) : The twenty-third incarnation of Lord Vishnu was as Lord Buddha. In the Kaliyuga the demons were completely subjugated by the deities. Shukracharya the teacher of the demons instigated the demons to perform Yagya so that they could regain power and authority. Fearing this the deities prayed to Lord Vishnu for help. Lord Vishnu took incarnation as Buddha and dissuaded the demons from performing Yagya as it involves violence the demons stopped performing Yagyas.
24) KALKI AVATAR (Incarnation as Kalki) : At the end of Kaliyuga, when the sins would be 80, all pervading that the kings would themselves becomes thieves then Lord Vishnu would take his twenty-fourth incarnation as Kalki by taking birth in the village of 'Shambhal'. He would take birth in a Brahmin family of Vishnuyash. By killing and destroying the sinners, he would re-establish the superiority of Virtuosity and religiousness.


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SAN DIEGO - The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued new written policies directing Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) officers, agents, and attorneys to use prosecutorial discretion to implement its priorities for immigration enforcement as well as reforms to the Secure Communities program.
Christopher Micheal spoke with American Immigration Lawers Association President Eleano Pelta:
The policy announcement came one day after ICE Director John Morton gave a keynote address to nearly 3000 members of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) at the group's annual conference in San Diego, CA.
"These are significant steps ICE has taken to clarify and advance its enforcement agenda. For the first time in a decade, the memo on prosecutorial discretion puts in a single document and in plain English the criteria ICE officers and trial attorneys should consider before initiating or pursuing enforcement actions," said AILA President Eleanor Pelta. "The memo lists factors such as good behavior, ties to America, and other equities for enforcement officials to consider when deciding what course of action to take in a particular case. The memo helps put into effect DHS's priorities so that it can better target law enforcement resources at those who would do us harm." A second memo focused specifically on protecting victims and witnesses of crimes, including domestic violence was also released.
DHS also announced several reforms to address flaws in the Secure Communities program, which has drawn criticism from federal and local officials, law enforcement leaders, and other leading civic and community leaders.
Recognizing the gravity of these concerns, in May, AILA called upon DHS to suspend the program. The reforms announced today include the creation of an advisory committee on Secure Communities, a complaint process, and a promise of more transparency about the program. "The reforms set in motion today begin to address the serious concerns we have about Secure Communities, but whether the program should be continued in the long run will depend on how ICE ultimately moves forward."
Although Secure Communities has been billed as a way to identify serious criminals who pose a threat to our communities, 60 percent of those deported under the program have never been convicted of a serious crime or any crime. AILA members have reported numerous cases of harmless individuals arrested for minor offenses like traffic violations and loitering who have been put indiscriminately in immigration proceedings.
"One purpose of the advisory board is to examine how DHS should handle individuals who are arrested for minor offenses. It is essential that DHS get that right. Harmless people who commit minor offenses should not be placed on a conveyor belt to deportation," Pelta said.


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Economic Development at UAB
Big picture
"UAB discoveries don't just save lives—they fuel Alabama's economic growth," says UAB President Ray L. Watts.
UAB Research Foundation has created more than $60 million in royalty and license fees with more than 2,100 invention disclosures, 650 patents, and more than 400 licenses and other agreements.
Since its founding in the mid-1980s, theNow, its presence will expand, operating as the Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, integrating the Research Foundation's existing strengths and capabilities, enhancing and facilitating service and technology commercialization. A key focus will be on engaging faculty and creating new experiential learning opportunities for students, all the while encouraging more interdisciplinary research.
But UAB's economic impact on Birmingham and Alabama is greater than the sum of its new knowledge. The university is the state's largest single-site employer, with an annual impact exceeding $5 billion. "To put that another way, for every dollar Alabama invests in UAB, we return more than $20 through jobs and economic development," Watts says.
UAB's education programs, especially its strengths in emerging fields such as biomedical engineering, industrial distribution, computer security, and neuroscience, prepare today's students to be the leaders of tomorrow, Watts adds.
Find out how UAB is training a new generation of computer security gurus in "1-Up," a feature from UAB Magazine—and play a video game inspired by UAB's computer security research:
"...The coup was made possible in part by UAB's Gary Warner and graduate student Brian Tanner. In January 2012, the site's security team thanked Warner and Tanner by name for their help in stopping the menace.
'Brian had been investigating Koobface since 2008,' Warner says. 'Several times, his work made the criminals change what they were doing. One time, he determined a way to cause Koobface to dump out a list of all the user passwords that it had, and then we contacted Google and Yahoo and Facebook and had them change all those passwords.
'In one day, the criminals lost 100,000 users...'" Read more
Get the details on UAB's economic impact at www.uab.edu/home/economic-impact.
Next > Do you want to discover lost worlds? And find new ones? Gauging the impact of UAB research


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Will window wonders never cease?
Optiek Van Overloop put the chic into geek with their
amazing l.a.Eyeworks NERDVANA window displays in Sint Niklaas, Belgium!
Wow! We thought there wasn't room for more "ultra" in our
UltraMost frame . . . until our friends at Berendsen Optiek in Huissen, The
Netherlands, made this unbelievable homage that is simply macro-magnificent -- right down to the frog toe!
Sacha Maerkaert


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WQP Home > Providers > STORET > OST_SHPD > OST_SHPD-NRSA1314-MTR9-0912
Missouri River (OST_SHPD-NRSA1314-MTR9-0912) site data in the Water Quality Portal
Data Provider: STORET (Learn more about Water Quality Portal Data Providers)
This river/stream site, maintained by the USEPA, Office of Water, Office of Science and Technology, Standards and Health Protection Division (identifier OST_SHPD), has the name "Missouri River" and has the identifier OST_SHPD-NRSA1314-MTR9-0912. This site is in the watershed defined by the 8 digit Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC)10030102.
This site is located in Cascade County County, Montana at 47.4516100000 degrees latitude and -111.3012800000 degrees longitude using the datum WGS84. No horizontal location accuracy metadata is available.
To download the metadata about this site along with water quality data, go to the Portal Page and enter "OST_SHPD-NRSA1314-MTR9-0912" into the "Site ID" box under Site Parameters
What other monitoring locations are upstream or downstream from this one?
This map shows all Water Quality Portal stations that are 10 miles upstream (dashed dark blue) and 10 miles downstream (solid light blue) of this monitoring location (indicated by the large blue circle). The upstream and downstream functionality is provided by the Network Linked Data Index.
Characteristic Group | Date Range* |
Inorganics, Minor, Metals | 2013 - 2013 |
Organics, PCBs | 2013 - 2013 |
PFAS,Perfluorinated Alkyl Substance | 2013 - 2013 |
What other information is available for this location?
For the definitions of the metadata elements, please go to the Water Quality Portal user guide
Location Metadata | Value |
OrganizationIdentifier | OST_SHPD |
OrganizationFormalName | USEPA, Office of Water, Office of Science and Technology, Standards and Health Protection Division |
MonitoringLocationIdentifier | OST_SHPD-NRSA1314-MTR9-0912 |
MonitoringLocationName | Missouri River |
MonitoringLocationTypeName | River/Stream |
MonitoringLocationDescriptionText | {"epa_region": "8", "stream_order": "7", "site_type": "Urban"} |
HUCEightDigitCode | 10030102 |
LatitudeMeasure | 47.4516100000 |
LongitudeMeasure | -111.3012800000 |
HorizontalCollectionMethodName | GPS-Unspecified |
HorizontalCoordinateReferenceSystemDatumName | WGS84 |
CountryCode | US |
StateCode | 30 |
CountyCode | 013 |
ProviderName | STORET |


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The BCHL is pushing the start of the 2020-21 season back by six days because of provincial health orders.
The schedule was set to begin Dec. 2 and will now begin Dec. 8, and the remainder of the 'extended training camp' games league-wide have been cancelled.
"If the Provincial Health Office (PHO) extends their current restrictions beyond Dec. 7, we have the option of moving the start date to after the holidays, but it is our intention to begin play once the current order expires," said BCHL Commissioner Chris Hebb. "Our objective from the beginning, when we worked out our COVID-19 Safety Plan with the PHO, was to allow our players to have a season, but we want to make sure it is under the safest conditions possible."
"Should the season start be delayed past Dec. 8, the players that choose to go home for the holidays will be required to adhere to travel guidelines, including going into isolation for 14 days prior to joining their team," added league Executive Director Steven Cocker.
A revised regular-season schedule will be released in the coming weeks.
READ MORE: BCHL approves pay-to-play model for 2020-21 season if fans can't attend games
READ MORE: Chiefs bring back Kyle Penney as NCAA Ivy League teams shut down
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Part 4 of the TED Radio Hour episode The End Of Privacy.
About John Wilbanks' TED Talk
Health IT expert John Wilbanks explores whether the desire to protect privacy is slowing research, and if opening up medical data could create a wave of health care innovation.
These are tools that we created to protect us from harm, but what they're doing is protecting us from innovation now.
About John Wilbanks
John Wilbanks wants to create an open, massive, mine-able database of health and genomics data from many sources. As the chief commons officer at WeConsent.us, he focuses on the ethics and procedures necessary to turn genetic info into big data — giving researchers the potential to spot patterns that they simply cannot see up-close.
In February 2013, the U.S. government responded to a We the People petition — spearheaded by Wilbanks — by announcing a plan to open up taxpayer-funded research data and make it available for free.
Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.


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InformationWeek 500, an annual listing of the Nation's most innovative users of business technology, has named the City of Santa Monica part of its list this year.
The award recognizes the City's Advanced Traffic Management System (ATMS) and the use of technology to address traffic, parking, and mobility issues.
The ATMS connects traffic signals, traffic signal controllers, traffic signal cameras, and wireless devices on transit corridors through the City's fiber optic network.
The entire system is managed from a centralized traffic management center where traffic signals are remotely monitored, managed and controlled in real-time.
Traffic signal timing is adjusted on-the-fly from the center to accommodate shifting traffic patterns due to peak travel times, special events, holidays, and traffic accidents.
The system enables ambulances and other emergency vehicles to automatically trigger green lights, improving safety during operations.
Parking lot and structure occupancy is electronically monitored, enabling staff to better manage parking in the City.
Real-time parking information is displayed for drivers on electronic signs and on the City website (smgov.net/parking) and mobile website. Wi-fi equipped parking meters accept payments via credit cards and cell phones. Multi-bay meters eliminate lines of cars waiting to enter parking lots.
A special website — smconstructs.org — provides the latest information on public and private development efforts as well as road closures, detours, and other impacts on local traffic.
The website serves as a portal, connecting users to information and services including social media channels, registration for SM Alerts to receive updated alerts on traffic and emergency notifications and a customer service system to report issues back to the City.


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Indiana Governor Portrait Artist: Frances Norris Streit (b. 1919)
Frances Norris Streit
Artist, Indiana Governors' Portrait Collection
George N. Craig (1909-1992), painted 1954
Governor of Indiana
January 12, 1953-January 14, 1957
Artist: Frances Norris Streit, American, b. 1919
oil on canvas, 44 x 36 1/4 (111.7 x 92.0)
Signed and dated l.r.: Frances Norris Streit 1954
BY VIRTUE of her artistic ability and with the aid of a persistent agent, her mother, Frances Norris Streit was chosen over fifty applicants to paint the official portrait of Governor Craig.
Streit received artistic training at John Herron Art Institute and at the State University of Iowa. During her course of study at Herron, she received several awards, including a bronze medal given by the Beaux Arts Institute of Architectural Design, for mural design. In 1943, Streit moved to New York, where she continued to paint portraits and teach art until 1973, when she retired to concentrate on mural design. She currently lives in Merrick, New York.
Before the work began, Streit had photographs of Governor Craig taken from several angles, and Mrs. Craig selected a pose that best reflected her husband's personality. Although photography is generally intended only as a convenience to reduce the number of sittings, in this case the artist was able to work from a photograph so that a one-hour sitting was all that was required of Craig to bring the portrait to completion. Before the work on the official portrait was begun, Streit painted a portrait of Mrs. Craig which the governor's wife commissioned as an anniversary gift to her husband.
The composition of the Craig portrait is interesting and casual, although credit for its organization belongs primarily to the photographer rather than to the artist. Perched on the edge of his desk, Craig confronts the viewer with a relaxed expression. A repetition of rectangular shapes emphasizes the governor's robust, stocky appearance. Transverse diagonal movements lead the eye from the center of the composition to the flags flanking the figure: the Indiana and American Legion flags are additions to the composition which highlight Craig's political achievements.
Generally speaking, a portrait painted from a photograph rather than from life achieves verisimilitude but lacks a good deal of character. Highly idealized, (1) the Craig portrait is flattering but at the expense of both likeness and vitality. The two-dimensional linear scheme contributes a decorative quality to the painting, but the literal use of color lessens its appeal. The set expression and textureless quality of the work are among the many pitfalls of painting a portrait from a photograph rather than from life.
(1) Both the Indianapolis Times and the Indianapolis News covered the unveiling of the portrait in Craig's office on January 7, 1955. Craig commented that the portrait flattered him. A comparison of a contemporary portrait, that done for the Time magazine cover, confirms this opinion.
Source: Peat, Wilbur D. Portraits and Painters of the Governors of Indiana 1800-1978. Revised, edited and with new entries by Diane Gail Lazarus, Indianapolis Museum of Art. Biographies of the governors by Lana Ruegamer, Indiana Historical Society. Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Society and Indianapolis Museum of Art, 1978.


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Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Cowlick Title Tutorial
I've received several questions on how I created this title for a layout I made for the Studio Calico booth.
It was so easy and simple, you'll be kicking yourself once you see how I made it.
First, I cut each letter with my Slice die-cut machine.
On the white cardstock, I discarded the "C" you would normally keep and used the negative image.
I cut around that, leaving about 1/8".
Then, I used my favorite glue pen to adhere the cardstock to the patterned paper (in my actual layout it was the reverse: patterned paper onto cardstock, but you get the idea).
And, I cut around that, leaving no excess.
Once I had all my letters, I spaced them appropriately on my layout and adhered them together, then used foam dots to give some dimension.
See, like I said, simple and easy and you can do it with any shape!
9 comments:
I'm sooo happy to hear you did this with the slice! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
- April 21, 2011 at 8:57 AM
- laura vegas said...
such a great tip april! i have tons of titles and words with this look to them, for my silhouette. i just love the thin outlined look. this is a perfect way to translate that same look to the slice :)
- April 21, 2011 at 10:24 AM
- lisa truesdell said...
that is brilliant. i'm going to have to see if my slice and i are "on" this week so i can try it. ;)
- April 21, 2011 at 11:05 AM
- Michelle Hernandez said...
This is so funny! I remember an SC page that did this a few months ago- I think it was this page!- and my brain erased all the info except for "Slice" and "silhouette letters". I just got my Slice via the mail today!!! THANK YOU for posting the tutorial- I am doing this on my next page! Your design (and color palette) is gorgeous!
- April 21, 2011 at 4:53 PM
- Dawn said...
Love this look!
You can actually have your Slice do all the work if you leave it on the mat & it's good and sticky. If you cut the smaller size and then leave it in place, you can size up the letter on your Slice and re-cut. :) - April 22, 2011 at 10:07 PM
- Lindsey Cornett said...
This is my first comment on your blog!
Thanks for the tutorial! I LOVED that title, and I'm excited to see that it's so easy!! :) - April 23, 2011 at 7:30 AM
- Jenny said...
Thanks so much April! I've been wondering how you did this! Off to try this now with my Slice!
- April 23, 2011 at 9:09 AM
- mprondzinski said...
Thank you so much for remembering to do this tutorial! I was dying to find out how you made those letters :)
- April 25, 2011 at 9:56 AM
- Cynthia Lloréns said...
April...such a great tip ! I loved .
I just love the thin outlined look. !!!!
Thanks for the tutorial.
Hugs from Brazil
I just love to came and see all your creation....you always do a such amazing job!!!
Cynthia - April 28, 2011 at 8:52 PM


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Does anything really matter?
A new book tries to explain how it may be possible to view moral judgements as objective truths.
Philosophers continue to argue about whether moral judgements can be stated as objective truths [GALLO/GETTY] |
Can moral judgements be true or false? Or is ethics, at bottom, a purely subjective matter, for individuals to choose, perhaps relative to the culture of the society in which one lives? We might have just found out the answer.
Among philosophers, the view that moral judgements state objective truths has been out of fashion since the 1930s, when logical positivists asserted that, because there seems to be no way of verifying the truth of moral judgements, they cannot be anything other than expressions of our feelings or attitudes. So, for example, when we say: "You ought not to hit that child," all we are really doing is expressing our disapproval of your hitting the child, or encouraging you to stop hitting the child. There is no truth to the matter of whether or not it is wrong for you to hit the child.
Although this view of ethics has often been challenged, many of the objections have come from religious thinkers who appealed to "God's commands". Such arguments have limited appeal in the largely secular world of Western philosophy. Other defences of objective truth in ethics made no appeal to religion, but could make little headway against the prevailing philosophical mood.
Last month, however, saw a major philosophical event: the publication of Derek Parfit's long-awaited book On What Matters. Until now, Parfit, Emeritus Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, had written only one book, Reasons and Persons, which appeared in 1984, to great acclaim. Parfit's entirely secular arguments, and the comprehensive way in which he tackles alternative positions, have, for the first time in decades, put those who reject objectivism in ethics on the defensive.
On What Matters is a book of daunting length: two large volumes, totalling more than 1,400 pages, of densely argued text. But the core of the argument comes in the first 400 pages, which is not an insurmountable challenge for the intellectually curious – particularly given that Parfit, in the best tradition of English-language philosophy, always strives for lucidity, never using obscure words where simple ones will do. Each sentence is straightforward, the argument is clear, and Parfit often uses vivid examples to make his points. Thus, the book is an intellectual treat for anyone who wants to understand not so much "what matters" as whether anything really can matter, in an objective sense.
Many people assume that rationality is always instrumental: reason can tell us only how to get what we want, but our basic wants and desires are beyond the scope of reasoning. Not so, Parfit argues. Just as we can grasp the truth that 1 + 1 = 2, so we can see that I have a reason to avoid suffering agony at some future time, regardless of whether I now care about, or have desires about, whether I will suffer agony at that time. We can also have reasons (though not always conclusive reasons) to prevent others from suffering agony. Such self-evident normative truths provide the basis for Parfit's defence of objectivity in ethics.
One major argument against objectivism in ethics is that people disagree deeply about right and wrong, and this disagreement extends to philosophers who cannot be accused of being ignorant or confused. If great thinkers like Immanuel Kant and Jeremy Bentham disagree about what we ought to do, can there really be an objectively true answer to that question?
Parfit's response to this line of argument leads him to make a claim that is perhaps even bolder than his defence of objectivism in ethics. He considers three leading theories about what we ought to do – one deriving from Kant, one from the social-contract tradition of Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and the contemporary philosophers John Rawls and TM Scanlon, and one from Bentham's utilitarianism – and argues that the Kantian and social-contract theories must be revised in order to be defensible.
Then he argues that these revised theories coincide with a particular form of consequentialism, which is a theory in the same broad family as utilitarianism. If Parfit is right, there is much less disagreement between apparently conflicting moral theories than we all thought. The defenders of each of these theories are, in Parfit's vivid phrase, "climbing the same mountain on different sides".
Readers who go to On What Matters seeking an answer to the question posed by its title might be disappointed. Parfit's real interest is in combating subjectivism and nihilism. Unless he can show that objectivism is true, he believes, nothing matters.
When Parfit does come to the question of "what matters", his answer might seem surprisingly obvious. He tells us, for example, that what matters most now is that "we rich people give up some of our luxuries, ceasing to overheat the Earth's atmosphere, and taking care of this planet in other ways, so that it continues to support intelligent life".
Many of us had already reached that conclusion. What we gain from Parfit's work is the possibility of defending these and other moral claims as objective truths.
Peter Singer is professor of Bioethics at Princeton University and Laureate Professor at the University of Melbourne. Revised editions of his books Practical Ethics and The Expanding Circle have just been published.
A version of this article first appeared on Project Syndicate.
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial policy.


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HCSG is one of the largest providers of environmental, dining, and nutritional services, and as such, we continually seek out motivated and professional leaders to join our team! Our firm commitment to training provides all of our associates with ample opportunity for self-improvement and professional growth. We offer equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, HCSG complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location where the company has facilities.


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Can one model the social deficits of autism and schizophrenia in animals?
5 May 2011 - The use of animal models to study human disease is essential to help advance our understanding of disease and to develop new therapeutic treatments.
Social deficits are common in several psychiatric disorders, including autism spectrum disorders and schizophrenia. Individuals with severe social dysfunction can experience significant difficulties with everyday functioning.
Oxytocin and vasopressin are hormones that play key roles in emotional and social behaviors and bonding. Oxytocin has been suggested as a treatment to improve social behavior in individuals with autism, and initial studies in humans appear promising.
Now, scientists have further characterized a mouse model that provides some insights into biological factors related to social deficits, by comparing mice that had their oxytocin receptor gene made inactive, using a specialized technique called genetic knockout, with unaltered mice.
The knockout mice (OTR-/-) displayed impaired social behavior, increased aggression and reduced cognitive flexibility leading to resistance to change. These behaviors returned to normal when the OTR-/- mice were given oxytocin or vasopressin treatment.
"These findings confirm and highlight the importance of oxytocin for social behaviors. This animal model also may be useful in evaluating the effectiveness of drugs, including vasopressin agonists, that may help improve social behavior in autism, schizophrenia, and other disorders," said Dr. John Krystal, Editor of Biological Psychiatry, the journal publishing these results.
"While no animal model can be expected to replicate the full complexity of the human behavioral autistic phenotype, the OTR-/- mouse may really help to understand the co-occurrence of these symptoms as a syndrome," explained Dr. Bice Chini, author and senior researcher of CNR - Institute of Neuroscience, Milano.
One important goal now is to fully characterize the neurodevelopmental processes modulated by oxytocin and vasopressin in order to fully understand their ability to reverse autistic symptoms.
More information: The article is "Pharmacologic Rescue of Impaired Cognitive Flexibility, Social Deficits, Increased Aggression, and Seizure Susceptibility in Oxytocin Receptor Null Mice: A Neurobehavioral Model of Autism" by Mariaelvina Sala et al. The article appears in Biological Psychiatry, Volume 69, Number 9 (May 1, 2011)


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Everyone knows my position on abortion: It's entirely up to the pregnant, affected woman whether or not to continue a pregnancy which solely impacts her biologically, physically, and hormonally. A man should have no say in whether or not a woman he has impregnated carries to term.
This position must be coupled with the following, or it is fundamentally unfair to men. While a man has no say in whether or not a woman he has impregnated carries to term, he should absolutely have a say in whether or not he wants to be a father. I think men should have the opportunity to walk away from pregnancy. A man who is childfree-by-choice should no more be "trapped" by an unwanted pregnancy than a woman who is.
So I don't think men should have an automatic obligation to pay child support, for example. If a man has not signed up for the responsibilities of fatherhood, he should not be assigned them, especially when the ultimate choice of whether or not to bring an unintended pregnancy to fruitition is not his to make.
Of course, along with this abdication of men's automatic responsibilities to children of their DNA, I also do not think impregnating someone else gives a man any automatic rights as a parent, either.
My alcoholic ex-husband, the biological father of my son, is not a good man, and he has never been a father. He did not provide care for me during pregnancy physically, emotionally, or financially. He did not modify his destructive behaviors to be a safe person for an infant to be around. He stole my son's change jar and cashed it in for drug money.
But if I were to die tomorrow, the law would give my son to this man, simply because they share DNA. I left this man when my son was a 6 week old infant. He has never heard my son speak, or seen him dance, or rushed him to the emergency room. He is not, in all ways that count, my son's father.
My boyfriend Viking is. He's held my son during immunizations, attended every school meeting, and tucked him into bed at night. He's given up recreational spending to start a college fund for our son, even as we struggle with our current expenses. He's studied autism along with me, so we can undersatnd our boy even better.
But he has no legal rights to the child he is helping me raise, because their DNA is different. We're looking into the process so he can legally adopt. (Finances dictate this is only in the theoretical stages for now.)
Even though I won full custody of my son three and a half years ago, my stated wishes in my Will are probably not enough to guarantee that in the case of my death, my son stays with his father, and isn't shipped off to live with a man who raped and abused, and yes, also impregnated me.*
I'd like to see a shift in our laws. Parenting well is a choice, made of daily actions and commitments and budgets. While there is no comparing a woman's body with a man's wallet, being able to enter parenting willingly rather than by obligation, coercion, and legal enforcement, is important for any parent.
Just as we must protect a woman's right to walk away from pregnancy via abortion, or to choose to let another parent a child she has born via adoption, we must protect a man's right to walk away. A man should never have a say in whether or not a woman terminates; that effects her body and her life. It is her choice to make. However, a man should have a say in whether or not he participates in the life of a born child.
So if he does want to raise his child, and the woman does want to birth it, a man should have legal recourse to petition for full cutsody, shared custody, regular visitation, etc.
Prior to birth, women have put in work bringing a child into the world. Women who haven't done this job "well" (say by using highly addictive narcotics during gestation) have their custody threatened. So should men who do not put any "work" into preparing for children they hope to raise. If a man does not physically, emotionally, or financially support or assist a pregnant woman, at the very least he is belittling her efforts. And it doesn't show a readiness for fatherhood, or a commitment to the health and well-being of his future child.
I wish all new biological parents, at hospitals or when applying for birth certificates for home births, had an opportunity to declare, once and for all "Yes, I commit to this child for a minimum of the next 18 years of his/her life and all the responsibilites and rights that go with that." or "No, I do not commit to raising this child. I do not wish to financially or otherwise support this child, and I abdicate any decision-making or custody rights I may have."
What if all parents wanted their kids? Imagine what a world and a society we could have. Imagine what happy children.
* The rape occurred after conception, during my pregnancy, when we were married.


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A Cataclysmic Event of a Certain Age
At the end of the Pleistocene period, approximately 12,800 years ago — give or take a few centuries — a cosmic impact triggered an abrupt cooling episode that earth scientists refer to as the Younger Dryas.
New research by UC Santa Barbara geologist James Kennett and an international group of investigators has narrowed the date to a 100-year range, sometime between 12,835 and 12,735 years ago. The team's findings appear today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The researchers used Bayesian statistical analyses of 354 dates taken from 30 sites on more than four continents. By using Bayesian analysis, the researchers were able to calculate more robust age models through multiple, progressive statistical iterations that consider all related age data.
"This range overlaps with that of a platinum peak recorded in the Greenland ice sheet and of the onset of the Younger Dryas climate episode in six independent key records," explained Kennett, professor emeritus in the Department of Earth Science. "This suggests a causal connection between the impact event and the Younger Dryas cooling."
In a previous paper, Kennett and colleagues conclusively identified a thin layer called the Younger Dryas Boundary (YDB) that contains a rich assemblage of high-temperature spherules, melt-glass and nanodiamonds, the production of which can be explained only by cosmic impact. However, in order for the major impact theory to be possible, the YDB layer would have to be the same age globally, which is what this latest paper reports.
"We tested this to determine if the dates for the layer in all of these sites are in the same window and statistically whether they come from the same event," Kennett said. "Our analysis shows with 95 percent probability that the dates are consistent with a single cosmic impact event."
All together, the locations cover a huge range of distribution, reaching from northern Syria to California and from Venezuela to Canada. Two California sites are on the Channel Islands off Santa Barbara.
However, Kennett and his team didn't rely solely on their own data, which mostly used radiocarbon dating to determine date ranges for each site. They also examined six instances of independently derived age data that used other dating methods, in most cases counting annual layers in ice and lake sediments.
Two core studies taken from the Greenland ice sheet revealed an anomalous platinum layer, a marker for the YDB. A study of tree rings in Germany also showed evidence of the YDB, as did freshwater and marine varves, the annual laminations that occur in bodies of water. Even stalagmites in China displayed signs of abrupt climate change around the time of the Younger Dryas cooling event.
"The important takeaway is that these proxy records suggest a causal connection between the YDB cosmic impact event and the Younger Dryas cooling event," Kennett said. "In other words, the impact event triggered this abrupt cooling.
"The chronology is very important because there's been a long history of trying to figure out what caused this anomalous and enigmatic cooling," he added. "We suggest that this paper goes a long way to answering that question and hope that this study will inspire others to use Bayesian statistical analysis in similar kinds of studies because it's such a powerful tool."


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The Greenish Warbler, long considered an idealized example of a single species that diverged into two as it expanded its range, has a much more checkered family history than biologists previously realized.
Ring species are a continuous loop of related populations, each adapted to its local environment, with two terminal populations in the loop meeting but now unable to mate. But an in-depth genomic analysis published today in Nature by University of British Columbia researchers reveals that the Greenish Warbler's genetic migration through central Asia involved periods of geographic separation and hybridization.
"We've shown that the evolution of ring species is much more complex than the smooth and continuous divergence envisioned by the classic model," says UBC zoologist Miguel Alcaide, the paper's lead author.
"If you view the ring of Greenish Warbler subspecies as a river, over the years the flow of populations has experienced periods of isolation--as if forming ponds during a draught--which accelerated genetic differences. This would have been interspersed with periods of flooding, or rapid exchange between populations. Interbreeding after range expansion has been, however, much more restricted among neighboring populations exhibiting substantial differences in morphology and behavior."
Originally expanding out of southern Asia, subspecies of greenish warbler have diverged around the expanse of the Tibetan plateau over thousands of years, with two distantly related populations meeting again in the north, in central Siberia. Since early observations in the 1930s, biologists have thought the terminal sub-species incapable of mating. The new analysis shows that small regions of the western Siberian genome can be found in some of the eastern Siberian birds, indicating some successful hybridization between those forms.
"Given the new genomic evidence for historical breaks in gene flow, it's remarkable that traits such as plumage and song show such gradual change around the ring," says UBC researcher Darren Irwin, senior author on the paper and an expert who has studied greenish warblers since the 1990s. "And despite the small amount of hybridization between the most distantly related forms in central Siberia, they remain highly distinct in songs, plumage and genomic patterns."
"Overall, despite the complex patterns of gene flow, the Greenish Warbler still has the central characteristics of a ring species: two mostly distinct populations connected by a chain of populations in which traits and genes change progressively from one species to the other," says Irwin.
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